Episcopal Life Daily February 20, 2008
Episcopal Life Online is available at http://www.episcopalchurch.org/elife.
Today's Episcopal Life Daily includes:
* TOP STORY - GAFCON rearranges conference following protests from Jerusalem church leaders * TOP STORY - International group to prepare Lambeth Conference Bible studies * WORLD REPORT - BRAZIL: Primate affirms Lambeth participation, calls on Communion to 'take a hard look in the mirror' * WORLD REPORT - CANADA: More churches align with South American province * MISSION - EYE Design Team will welcome church's youth to San Antonio this summer * PEOPLE - WCC's Kobia will not seek second term as general secretary * PEOPLE - Four bishops receive honorary degrees from Seminary of Southwest * TEACHING - Berkeley-based Episcopal, Lutheran seminaries offer second annual joint Summer Session * SPIRITUAL REFLECTIONS - Third Sunday in Lent - Year A [RCL] * WEEKS AHEAD - Upcoming special events and services * DAYBOOK - February 21, 2008: Today in Scripture, Prayer, History * CATALYST - The Trouble I've Seen: the Big Book of Negro Spirituals
_____________________
TOP STORIES
GAFCON rearranges conference following protests from Jerusalem church leaders
By Matthew Davies
[Episcopal News Service] Organizers of the Global Anglican Future Conference (GAFCON) have announced changes to the meeting's dates and venue, bowing to strong criticism from Anglican Church leaders in Jerusalem who have repeatedly called for the gathering to be moved.
Originally scheduled for June 14-22 in Jerusalem, GAFCON will now be divided into two parts: a consultation in Jordan June 18-22 followed by a pilgrimage to Jerusalem June 22-29, a February 20 statement on the conference website announced. The new arrangements largely reflect a request from Anglican Bishop in Jerusalem Suheil Dawani, a leading opponent of GAFCON's original agenda, who said the conference would "import inter-Anglican conflict" into his diocese and be "disastrous" for his ministry in the Holy Land.
Meeting almost one month prior to the 2008 Lambeth Conference, GAFCON is largely regarded as a rival to that once-a-decade gathering of Anglican bishops.
GAFCON organizers have said the Jordan consultation "will include the conference leadership, theological resource group, those bishops serving in majority Islamic settings and other key leaders" whereas the Jerusalem pilgrimage "will focus on worship, prayer, discussions and Bible Study, shaped by the context of the Holy Land."
Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/79901_95073_ENG_HTM.htm
- - - - -
International group to prepare Lambeth Conference Bible studies
[ACNS] At the request of the Archbishop of Canterbury, Professor Gerald West from University KwaZulu-Natal in Southern Africa has convened an international group to prepare Bible studies for 2008 Lambeth Conference, the Anglican Communion News Service reports. Members of the group came from DR Congo, India, Tanzania, United States and United Kingdom.
"Bishops and spouses will pursue the same studies, though in their own separate groups at the July Lambeth Conference," the release says. The focus of the Bible studies will be on the "I am" sayings of Jesus in John's gospel.
"Prayer and preparation before and around the conference are important," the release notes, adding that Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams has encouraged as many people as possible in the Communion to make such preparation a priority.
Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/79901_95079_ENG_HTM.htm
More Top Stories: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/elife
_____________________
WORLD REPORT
BRAZIL: Primate affirms Lambeth participation, calls on Communion to 'take a hard look in the mirror' http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81808_95081_ENG_HTM.htm
CANADA: More churches align with South American province http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81808_95060_ENG_HTM.htm
More World news: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81808_ENG_HTM.htm
_____________________
MISSION
EYE Design Team will welcome church's youth to San Antonio this summer
By Joe Bjordal
[Episcopal News Service] When nearly 1,500 young Episcopalians arrive in San Antonio, Texas this July, they will take part in a five-day gathering that has been meticulously planned by a group of youth and adults from around the church.
That group, the 2008 Episcopal Youth Event (EYE) Design Team, along with members of the Support Team, met in a suburban Minneapolis hotel February 15-18. It was the third such four-day meeting for the Design Team, which will oversee every aspect of the triennial gathering.
EYE 2008 will take place on the campus of Trinity University, San Antonio, July 8-13. The theme will be "Sown in the Heart of Christ."
Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/79901_95052_ENG_HTM.htm
More Mission: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81799_ENG_HTM.htm
_____________________
PEOPLE
WCC's Kobia will not seek second term as general secretary
[Ecumenical News International] The general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC), the Rev. Samuel Kobia, has announced that he will not seek a second term at the head of the world's biggest Christian grouping.
"Kobia made his intentions known.stating personal reasons for his decision not to seek a second term," the WCC announced on February 18 after almost nine hours of deliberations behind closed doors by its main governing body, the central committee.
"The central committee received this news with regret but accepts the decision of the general secretary," said WCC moderator, the Rev. Walter Altmann, in a statement.
Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81831_95067_ENG_HTM.htm
- - - - -
Four bishops receive honorary degrees from Seminary of Southwest
[ETSS] The Episcopal Theological Seminary of the Southwest (ETSS) in Austin, Texas, conferred honorary Doctor of Divinity degrees on four of its alumni, all recently ordained bishops of the Episcopal Church, during a Festival Eucharist for the Mission of the Church on February 13.
The four were: the Rt. Rev. David Reed (Class of 1983), bishop suffragan of the Diocese of West Texas; the Rt. Rev. Todd Ousley (Class of 1991), bishop of the Diocese of Eastern Michigan; the Rt. Rev. Dena Harrison (Class of 1987), bishop suffragan of the Diocese of Texas; and the Rt. Rev. Gregory Rickel (Class of 1996), bishop of the Diocese of Olympia (Washington).
The Rt. Rev. Gary Lillibridge, bishop of the Diocese of West Texas, preached the service's sermon. He was recently named a member of the Windsor Continuation Group by Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams -- the only American to be included in the panel.
Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81831_95072_ENG_HTM.htm
More People: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/81831_ENG_HTM.htm
_____________________
TEACHING
Berkeley-based Episcopal, Lutheran seminaries offer second annual joint Summer Session
[CDSP] In an extraordinary partnership, Church Divinity School of the Pacific (CDSP) and Pacific Lutheran Theological Seminary (PLTS) are again collaborating to offer the second annual Summer Session, July 14-August 8 in Berkeley, California.
"Church leaders find themselves facing enormous challenges.In our joint Summer Session, people come together because they want to strengthen their ministries. They take risks together, test and support each other, and learn and train with the finest theological educators," said David Gortner, director of the Center for Learning & Leadership (CALL) at CDSP, and Herbert Anderson, research professor in Practical Theology at PLTS, in a joint statement. "In courses covering a wide variety of topics and skills, they discover together new ways to nurture their spirits, challenge their minds, and engage the world."
Throughout July and early August, a variety of timely and enriching theological education courses will be offered each week.
Full story: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/78650_95066_ENG_HTM.htm
_____________________
SPIRITUAL REFLECTIONS
Third Sunday in Lent - Year A [RCL]
Exodus 17:1-7; Psalm 95; Romans 5:1-11; John 4:5-42
By Frank Hegedus
[Sermons That Work] Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, 'Rabbi, eat something.'"
It is not often that we find anyone in the gospels giving Jesus advice or telling him what to do. He is after all the Lord -- the one who tells others what to do. Jesus does not need anyone's advice. Even his mother, in the story of the wedding at Cana, simply announces to him, "They have no wine." She leaves the rest to him. She does not tell him what to do.
So it is surprising, and touching, to find the disciples in our gospel account today, telling Jesus to "eat something." Jesus was "tired out by his journey" and perhaps by his dialogue with the Samaritan woman at the well. Taking note of his weariness, the disciples urge him in no uncertain terms to get some nourishment. Take care of yourself, they seem to say. We might almost expect them, like over-solicitous parents, to tell him next to wear comfortable walking shoes, get plenty of rest, and save for retirement.
Full reflection: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/82478_94999_ENG_HTM.htm
More Spiritual Reflections: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/82457_ENG_HTM.htm
_____________________
WEEKS AHEAD
A round-up of upcoming special events, services, concerts and diocesan conventions taking place throughout the Episcopal Church is available at http://www.episcopalchurch.org/78650_1669_ENG_HTM.htm
_____________________
DAYBOOK
On February 21, 2008...
* Today in Scripture: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/82457_ENG_HTM.htm * Today in Prayer: Anglican Cycle of Prayer: http://www.anglicancommunion.org/acp/index.cfm * Today in History: On February 21, 1801, John Henry Newman, Oxford Movement leader, was born in London.
_____________________
CATALYST
"The Trouble I've Seen: the Big Book of Negro Spirituals" from Judson Press, by Bruno Chenu, 298 pages, paperback, c. 2003, $20
[Source: Judson Press] Bruno Chenu provides an extraordinary record of the origin and history of Negro spirituals and offers exceptional historical and sociological insights into their meaning. Section One focuses on the origin of the spiritual by examining the odyssey of the North American slave trade from the 17th through the 19th centuries. Section Two features an exhaustive study of the various themes found within the spirituals, which number today at more than 6,000. In Section Three, Chenu provides a glimpse into the very soul of the slave through hymns, prayers, and the astonishing personal testimonies of slaves. The reader will see the formation of the spiritual up close. The collections of stories and interviews with free and former slaves that were used as research for The Trouble I've Seen will undoubtedly leave a profound and memorable imprint. Includes the words to more than 200 moving spirituals as well as a premium quality CD of inspirational spirituals performed by the Moses Hogan Chorale.
To order: Episcopal Books and Resources, online at http://www.episcopalbookstore.org, or call 800-903-5544 -- or visit your local Episcopal bookseller, http://www.episcopalbooksellers.org
More Catalyst: http://www.episcopalchurch.org/83842_ENG_HTM.htm